When Does Religion Influence Fertility?

Abstract

Religious affiliation as a determinant of demographic behavior is receiving renewed attention in demography. Interest in the role of cultural factors in affecting fertility and a specific concern with the role of Islam in many developing countries have helped re-invigorate research on the role of religion. This article reviews theoretical and empirical work on that relationship, with special attention to a number of cases in which religion has been identified as an important determinant of fertility patterns. The article concludes that religion plays an influential role when three conditions are satisfied: first, the religion articulates behavioral norms with a bearing on fertility behavior; second, the religion holds the means to communicate these values and promote compliance; and, third, religion forms a central component of the social identity of its followers. Copyright 2004 The Population Council, Inc..

Secularism and Fertility Worldwide

“…access to these family-planning methods, individual religious people use them when two conditions are met: the methods are 1) available and 2) seen as a culturally-acceptable option. In other words, basic access is a prerequisite, but norms and values matter as well, shaping fertility preferences and how people manage them, including reluctance or readiness to use effective methods for limiting fertility (Adamczyk 2008;McQuillan 2004;Ogland and Verona 2011;Schnabel 2016aSchnabel , 2016bSeguino 2011;Wilde and Danielsen 2015). 23 More secular cultures tend to have a general set of progressive societal norms about gender, family, and reproductionincluding gender egalitarianism, sex for pleasure rather than reproduction, and selfactualization-that lead to lower fertility preferences and greater readiness to use effective family planning methods (Adsera 2006;Buber-Ennser and Skirbekk 2016;Hayford and Morgan 2008).…”

“…Although gender equity theory suggests material gender equity may be the most important intermediary factor (McDonald 2013), McQuillan (2004 argued that values related to gender and sexuality are key reasons why religion influences fertility (also see Hayford and Morgan 2008). Therefore, I expect that differences in cultural values and related material conditions in more secular societies will account for a large share of observed fertility behavior differences (as measured by CEB).…”

“…Secularism (and related individualization) are highly relevant to both second demographic transition theory and developmental idealism. In addition to the importance of secular values and people choosing self-fulfilling lifestyles, gender equity-which is strongly predicted by nonreligious populations in instrumental variable analysis (Schnabel 2016b)-is an important factor in fertility variation (McDonald 2013;McQuillan 2004).…”

Religion, Politics, and the Social Capital of Children

“…In fact, religious institutions often use strategies to promote childbearing (Lehrer 2004;McQuillan 2004;Morgan 1996;Wilcox, Chaves, and Franz 2004), as some church leaders influence daily behavior of members through broadcasted norms and ensuing "sanctions ranging in format from guilt to damnation" (Lesthaeghe and Surkyn 1988, 13). Indeed, frequency of church attendance, regardless of denomination, is a strong predictor of an individual's preference for families of three or more children (Hayford and Morgan 2008;Lesthaeghe and Surkyn 1988).…”

“…Traditionally, most fertility studies involving religious influence have addressed the differences between Catholics and Protestants, as Catholics tended to have larger families; but currently, this gap is almost nonexistent due to later marriage by Catholics (resulting in fewer children) and larger families of Protestants who attend church frequently (Lehrer 2004;McQuillan 2004;Mosher, Williams and Johnson 1992). More recent studies focus on the fertility differentials between mainline and evangelical Protestants, mostly attributed to doctrinal 5 differences of evangelicals espousing stronger pronatalist views (be fruitful and multiply) and an aversion to contraceptives and abortion (playing God) (Marcum 1981;McQuillan 2004).…”